Plastic extrusion



May 5, .1970 R. L. scHRocK PLASTIC EXTRUSION Filed July 17 1967 INVENTORRg HARD L. S CHROCK AZ TY.

UnitedStatesPatent Office 3,509,592 Patented May 5, 1 9701 PLASTICEXTRUSION Richard L. Schrock, Marietta, Ohio, assignor to The B. F.

Goodrich Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed July17, 1967, Ser. No. 653,998 Int. Cl. A47b 95/02 U.S. Cl. 16-110 ABSTRACTOF THE DISCLOSURE A one-piece plastic extrusion for use as a combinedhandle and stop for a cabinet door, the extrusion having portions ofdifferent stiffness including a rigid combined handle and channelportion, for engagement over the edge of a sliding glass door, a rigidlatch portion for limiting the movement of the door and a flexibleplastic hinge portion interconnecting the said rigid portions with stopportions of rigid plastic extending from the channel portion forlimiting movement of the latch relativeto the channel.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The grip or handle for openingslidingcabinet doors, such as glass doors on frozen food displaycabinets, has heretofore been combined with the frame for the slidingdoor and with a hinged stop for limiting the sliding movement of thedoor and effecting a seal between the cabinet and door when the latteris closed. A plastic extrusion of one-piece construction having portionsof plastic with compositions having different stiffness, for the samestructural dimensions, provides a convenient means of combining thedesired features of grip, frame, stop and seal especially in cabinetconstructions whereinthe sliding tion or separation thereof from thelatch portion or from it the main body of the extrusion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a uniquesolution to the i above mentioned problem by incorporating, in aone-piece plastic extrusion which serves as a combination frame, dustseal, grip and stop for a sliding door on a cabinet, an abutment portionfor the stop preventing excessive stresses in the hinge portion uponcontact of the stop with the edge of the cabinet opening. The stop andabutment portions, nevertheless, are so designed that the stop can bemoved to a position for passing over the edge of the cabinet withoutmaking contact therewith when it is desired to remove the slidingcabinet door from its tracks. At that time the stop portion is moved, bydeforming the flexible plastic hinge portion, to a position parallel tothe interior surface of the door and with no part of the stop contactingthe edge of the cabinet as the door frame is moved over the edge of thecabinet and the door is thus removed from its tracks. The invention thusprovides a novel one-piece plastic frame, seal and stop for a slidingcabinet door having a depressible rigid stop flexibly hinged forremoving the door from its tracks.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective View of acabinet of the type used for frozen food display equipped with a slidingglass 4 Claims door and having anextrusionincorporating the inventioninstalled along the lower edge of the movable glass door;

FIG. 2 is a enlarged sectional view taken along the section indicatingline 2-2 in FIG. 1 and showing the movable glass door in full lines inthe closed positions and in dot-dash lines in the open position; and

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing the position of the partswhen the flexible hinge and stop are in the position for removing theglass door from its sliding tracks.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to FIG. 1, a freezer cabinet 10 is shownhaving inclined glass front cover doors 11, at least the lower sectionof which is obliquely slidable vertically along the incline to provideaccessto theinterior of the cabinet. The

lower edge of the said slidable door has the extrusionw20 installed as aframe over the lower horizontal edge of the glass door. FIG. 2 shows thedetails of the manner in which the extrusion 20 is mounted on the glassportion of door 11 and now it closes in contact with the edge 21 of thefreezer cabinet opening.

Theextrusion 20 is composed of a U-shaped channel portion havingopposite parallel sides 20a and a closed: base portion 20b which areadapted to slip fit over the;

edge of the glass door 11. The sides 20a and baseportion 20b of theextrusion are formed of rigid plastic and,

in the preferred form has a plurality of flexible gripping fins 200formed integrally longitudinally on each of the two adjacent interiorsurfaces of the channel sides 20a extending obliquelytherefromforproviding retentionand gripping force when the extrusion is assembledonto the glass. Deflection of the fins 20c causes them to exert a,frictional force on the surface of the glass which resists withdrawal oftheglass from the channel, The fins-2ilcu are made of a plasticcomposition more flexible than the material of the base 20a.

A grip or handle portion 20d, formed of plastic composition of the samerigidity as that of the base 20b, has:

one edge formed longitudinally integral with the side, of

the channel exteriorly to the glass door. The grip; or,

handle portion :extends outwardly from the surface of the outer side20a, and is preferably formed as a continuation of the closed baseportion 20b of the channel extending therefrom in generallyperpendicular relationship to the exterior surface of the exteriorchannel side 2011; In the preferred form shown in FIG. 2, the grip 20dhas an inverted L-shaped cross section with the outer portion thereofextending in spaced parallel relation to the side 6 20a of the channel.

A hinge portion 202, formed of plastic material of greater flexibilitythan the channel portion, has one edge longitudinally integrally unitedwith the outer surface of the side 20a, in a direction toward the openend of the channel 20. A stop portion 20 of rigid plastic material ofthe same stiffness as the channel 20, having an elongated cross sectionand two opposite flat surfaces is formed with one of the flat surfacesintegrally connected intermediate the edges thereof with the free edgeof the hinge 20c. In the presently preferred form of the invention, thestop portion 20 which serves the dual function of a stop and seal, hasthe two opposite flat surfaces substantially parallel and has its upperedge 20 adjacent the base provided witha longitudinally extending ridgeor lip convexly arcuate in cross section. A lug 20g of the same rigidplastic as the channel 20 is formed longitudinally integrally with theside 20a of the channel along the interior of the channel and extendstherefrom in the vicinity of the juncture of the channel side 20a andthe hinge 20a for positively engaging the lip 20 on the upper edge ofthe stop 20 The lower or outer part of the stop portion 20jis adapted tonormally extend at subantially right angles relative to the channel sidewhen lgaged with the edge surface 21b of the freezer cabinet hen themoving door 11 is in its closed position coopering therewith to formboth a stop for the door and a a1 between the latter and the cabinet.

An abutment 20h, formed of rigid plastic, preferably Y the samestiffness as the channel 20, is integrally united ngitudinally along thefree edge of the same side 20a the channel as the hinge 20e and extendsoutwardly .erefrom at substantially a right angle for limiting)unterclockwise movement of the stop portion 20 as ewed in FIG. 2.Preferably, the abutment 20h has an .verted L-shaped cross section withan integral longildinal rib of the same stiff plastic extending from thefree lge thereof in spaced parallel relationship with the side E thechannel 20a, and in a direction toward the stop )1.

Referring to FIG. 2, the dot-dash outline illustrates the referred formof the invention in its free position with re glass door of the cabinetpartially open. As so shown, 1e stop portion 201 extends generallyvertically downardly with the lower part in position to engage the edgelb of the opening in the cabinet frame 21. As the glass oor slidestoward the edge 21b of the cabinet 10, the spending part of the portion20 first makes contact with re interior edge 21b of the cabinet openingcausing the lid portion 20] to move into engagement with the abutlent2011 by deforming the flexible hinge portion 20s. t small additionalmovement of the door in the closing irection causes the portion 20 torotate until the lip 0f thereon engages the lug 20g on the channel andthe ortion 20 is constrained from further movement relave to the channel20. Hence, a seal is provided between 1e cabinet and the door as well asa positive stop for re glass door .11. The abutment 2011 not only addsto 1e rigidity of the stop but also prevents the development f excessivestresses in the hinge 20e when the door is apidly moved to closedposition.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the extrusion 20 is shown with the stop portion20 in depressed position for passig over the edge 21 of the cabinetopening without any ngagement therewith. This is achieved by placing theabinet door in the open position and then manually isplacing androtating the portion 20 in a direction way from the abutment 20h untilthe hinge 206 has eformed sufficiently to allow the portion 20f to havea osition parallel to the door 11. The hinge 20e is deormed suflicientlyto permit spacing the portion 20 close nough to the channel side 20a toallow passage over the dge 21 of the cabinet. The door may then bereadily emoved from and reinstalled in its sliding tracks.

Although only the presently preferred embodiment of he invention hasbeen above described, modifications and .daptations will readily occurto those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A one-piece extrusion of plastic material having porions of diiferentstiffness for samples thereof of like limensions comprising:

'(a) a channel portion of rigid plastic having a generally U-shapedcross section adapted to engage in sealing relationship over the edge ofa panel with one side of said channel lying along the interior surfaceof the 4 panel and the other side lying along the exterior side of thepanel;

(b) a grip portion of rigid plastic material of the same stiffness assaid channel portion having one edge thereof formed longitudinallyintegrally along and extending outwardly from the sides of said channellying along the surfaces of the panel;

(c) an abutment portion of rigid plastic of the same stiffness as saidchannel having one edge thereof formed longitudinally along the freeedge of the side of said channel lying along the interior of the saidpanel and extending therefrom with its outer edge spaced from the panel;

((1) a hinge portion elongated in cross section of plastic material oflesser stiffness than said channel having one edge formed longitudinallyintegral with the exposed surface of the side of said channel on theinterior of said panel with the said hinge portion extending obliquelytherefrom;

(e) a stop portion of rigid plastic material of the same stiffness assaid channel having an elongated cross section with two opposite facesone of which is integrally united intermediate its longitudinal edges tothe other edge of said hinge for flexibly connecting said portion tosaid channel; and,

(f) a lug portion of the same plastic material as said channel extendingtherefrom in longitudinally spaced parallel relationship between saidhinge and the adjacent edge of said stop portion, the said lug and saidabutment cooperating with said stop portion for limiting movement of thelatter away from said channel to a position in which the said stop is atsubstantially right angles to the side of said channel to therebyprovide a positive stop for sliding movement of the panel.

2. The extrusion as defined in claim 1 wherein said abutment portion hasa lip extending from the longitudinal free edge thereof and toward saidstop in spaced parallel relationship with said channel.

3. The extrusion as defined in claim 1, wherein said hinge issufiiciently deformable to permit movement of said stop away from saidabutment and into a generally parallel relationship to said channel.

4. The extrusion defined in claim 1 wherein the upper end of said stopportion has a longitudinally extending lip convexly arcuate in crosssection and said lug has the surface adjacent said stop provided with alongitudinally extending recess generally concave in cross section andpositioned for reception of said ridge.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1967 Cooke et a1 16-82 BOBBY R.GAY, Primary 'Examiner D. L. TROUTMAN, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.=R.

